A New Year's Eve Confession
by MagicGirlinAMuggleWorld
Summary: Canon universe, fluffy one-shot. Marauders-era Hogwarts students attend a New Year's Eve party and James learns that maybe this is the year he'll have a shot with Lily Evans.


When the Marauders arrived at Connor Maclaggan's home just after ten o'clock on New Year's Eve, the party was already well underway. The four boys paused at the entrance to the main hall, gawking at the sights, before they stepped inside to join the celebration.

Earlier, James had privately thought Maclaggan a bit pretentious, referring to his New Year's Eve party as a ball. Now, though, he had to admit that the set-up was quite impressive. The high-ceilinged room was ringed in fairy lights and silver ribbon, and magical sparkling snow drifted from the rafters, disappearing before it could settle on the guests' clothes and hair. There were ice sculptures in the center of the hall, a live band on a raised platform towards the back, and tables full of spirits and holiday treats along either side. With its swinging music, well-dressed guests, and warm winter smells, the room itself felt alive.

"Well, we know where Remus'll be all night," Sirius joked, as Remus made a beeline for the dessert table and begin stacking a small plate with chocolate-dipped strawberries. Sirius scanned the room again, then pointed at a couple seated at a round table in a corner. "Look, there's Macdonald and Cattermole. Let's go say hello."

The boys approached Mary and Reginald's table and offered their greetings and exchanged a flurry of compliments on everyone's smart dress robes. As James and Sirius made to settle in for a longer conversation, Peter stepped back from the table. "I'm going to grab a drink before I sit down," he announced. "Do you lads want anything?"

"I'll take a firewhiskey!" Sirius said.

"Butterbeer for me, Pete, thanks," said James. "Do you need help?"

Peter shook his head as he strode away, calling, "I'll be all right!" over his shoulder.

James and Sirius continued chatting with Reg and Mary, who were Gryffindor students in the year below them, about the "groovy" music and resolutions for the coming year. Soon Marlene McKinnon, who was a 6th year student like the Marauders, joined them as well. Remus returned with two plates full of sweets and was kind enough to share with everyone at the table. The music was great and the banter was lively – a perfect way to ring in a new year.

After a few minutes of idle chatter, Sirius nudged James with his elbow. "Oi. Look at Pete."

James followed Sirius' gaze and saw their friend moving slowly towards them, his wand clutched between two fingers and a tumbler of firewhiskey in each hand. He had a look of fierce concentration on his face and floating in front of him were two mugs of butterbeer.

"I asked him if he needed help," James grumbled affectionately. He started to stand, but Sirius put a hand on his shoulder.

"No, I want to see him do this." He grinned wickedly. "Five galleons says he drops one."

"That's not on," Remus said. "He's _definitely_ going to drop one."

"Have a little faith, you two!" Mary chided.

"Yeah. If he drops them, we all lose," said James. Then he returned Sirius' grin and added, "But make it three galleons, and you're on."

Mary shook her head, and the two boys shook hands. And then, almost immediately, Peter stumbled. James winced as some butterbeer sloshed over the edge of one of the floating mugs, but none of the drinks fell. James let out a sigh of relief.

Unfortunately, Pete was nervous now. He started moving more quickly, and the mugs of butterbeer began wobbling in the air.

"Oh, dear," Mary said, chewing on her lower lip as she watched Peter hurry towards them.

"Not looking good for me…" James muttered.

The butterbeers hit the floor about ten feet from where James and Sirius were sitting. Other guests nearby jumped and gasped and shot Peter dirty looks as the drink splashed on their shoes. Remus just shook his head.

"Sorry!" Peter squeaked, lowering himself into a chair and setting the firewhiskeys on the table. "I thought I had it."

"Bad luck, Pete," Sirius said, smirking. He pulled out his wand and cleaned the spilled drinks and broken mugs with a flick of his wrist, then turned to James. "Jimmy, I believe you owe me three galleons."

James sighed and produced the money from the pocket of his robes. "There you go," he said. He pushed his chair back and stood up. "I'll go for the drinks this time."

"Thanks, Prongs! Sorry!" Peter said again. "That second butterbeer was for Remus, I thought he might want it with his sweets."

"Ah, cheers, Pete," Remus said, raising a small fruit tart in his direction. "I will take a butterbeer, thanks, Prongs."

James nodded and began to weave through the crowd towards the left side of the cavernous ballroom, where the butterbeer fountain, fizzy drinks, and spirits were located. He approached the fountain first and filled up a mug with butterbeer. As he reached for a second mug, a familiar, flirtatious girl's voice made him freeze in place.

"_Me-oww!_" the girl said in an exaggerated purr as she placed a hand on his upper arm. "You look fab!"

James winced briefly before plastering a smile on his face. "Phoebe," he said, turning to greet her. "Thanks. Happy new year."

"To you, too," she replied. She smiled coyly and put a hand on her cocked hip. "Do you like my dress? I thought I'd start the new year with a bang."

Phoebe Abbott was a fifth-year student in Ravenclaw. She was pretty and clever and, quite honestly, a bit of a snob. She loved to remind the other students of her pureblood lineage and her great-grandfather who'd sat on the Wizengamot. Perhaps it was merely a defense mechanism in these troubled times, but James found her obsession with lineage disconcerting and tried to avoid her. But somehow, lately, she'd developed a knack for popping up everywhere he went, fluttering her eyelashes and giggling.

Like right now.

"It's…nice," James said, giving the deep red, low-cut, halter dress a once-over. "If I didn't know any better, I'd think you were representing Gryffindor tonight." He immediately cringed, hoping she didn't take that for flirting. He turned away from her and the butterbeer fountain and moved instead towards the whiskey-stocked bar (he thought he might need it). He gave Phoebe a weak smile over his shoulder in the interest of politeness. "I was just about to grab a drink."

"Oh, I'd love one, thank you!" Phoebe trilled.

James suppressed a sigh. "Right. One firewhiskey, please," he said to the bartender, "and…what are you drinking, Abbott?"

"Sparkling elderflower, please." She fluttered her eyelashes again.

The bartender nodded and poured the drinks, which James accepted. He handed Phoebe her bubbly cocktail, then picked up his firewhiskey in one hand and the butterbeer in the other. "All right, then, I guess I'll see you around," he said, bobbing his head in goodbye.

"Wait!" Phoebe exclaimed, sounding unreasonably breathless, given she was standing still. "How about a dance?"

"Erm, well…I've got to drop this off," James said quickly, wiggling the mug of butterbeer. He shrugged. "But maybe later?" He tried to step past her, but she tugged on his arm.

"Oh, come on, Sirius can wait," Phoebe pouted. "Just one dance. This dress deserves to be seen, don't you think?"

James wasn't interested in helping Phoebe show off, and her insistence irked him. "It's not for Sirius," he said shortly, hoping she'd take the hint and allow him to leave.

Phoebe narrowed her eyes in suspicion. "Then who's it for?"

This time, James couldn't hold back his sigh. "My…date," he lied. He cleared his throat and repeated more firmly, "Yes, I'm here on a date."

"No, you aren't," Phoebe said, with another coy smile.

"What makes you say that?"

"I heard Sirius tell Peter that you planned to go _stag_. They thought it was hilarious." She petted his arm and poked out her lower lip again. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about, I just don't want you to be alone."

James fought the urge to roll his eyes. "Ah. One of Sirius' bad jokes, actually, but I very much have a date."

"Hmm." Phoebe raised an eyebrow and continued to press. "Where is she, then?"

Internally, James screamed so loudly he imagined his hair standing (even more) on end. Outwardly, though, he just pretended to scan the crowd, then frowned. "Hmm, I don't see her. Guess I should go find her, huh?" He feigned a chuckle and made another effort to move around Phoebe.

She blocked his path. "So, who's the lucky girl?"

A gleeful cry interrupted the none-too-polite response that was on the tip of James' tongue. He took a deep breath and turned towards the sound, glad for any excuse to end this conversation.

"It's about bloody time!" Marlene yelled, running past him. "I was beginning to think you meant to leave me alone at midnight!"

James turned to see what had Marlene so excited and saw that she had wrapped Dorcas in her arms and lifted the smaller girl off the ground. Her face was buried in Dorcas' fluffy Afro, and both girls were giggling. And standing next to them, laughing loudest of all, was Lily Evans.

She was wearing a short gold shift dress and tall platform boots. In contrast to the simple makeup she favored at school, tonight her lips were painted bright red. Her beautiful eyes were crinkled at the corners, and her long hair tumbled down her back as she laughed.

She looked radiant.

"Evans," James breathed, unable to stop staring.

"Evans?" Phoebe repeated, wrinkling her nose.

Perhaps Lily heard them, because she looked up and grinned right at James. "Potter," she said, inclining her head. She nodded at Phoebe as well. "Phoebe. Having fun?"

Inspiration struck, and James reacted quickly. "Yes. I was just looking for you!" he blurted out, before Phoebe could respond to Lily. He thrust the mug of butterbeer in Lily's direction. "Here's your drink."

Her eyebrows jumped up. "Thank…you?" she said, taking the mug cautiously.

"Of course," James said, relieved that she'd accepted it. One corner of his mouth ticked up in an awkward smile, and he lifted his firewhiskey to her. "Cheers."

"Cheers," Lily repeated, taking a sip of her drink. Her brilliant green eyes studied him over the rim of her mug.

"Lily Evans is your date?" Phoebe let out an obnoxious twittering laugh and cast a skeptical look in Lily's direction. "Lily, didn't you say just last week 'Potter's _almost_ as charming as the Giant Squid'?"

Lily laughed again, that joyful laugh that stopped James in his tracks. "I did, and he is," she said, grinning. She looked at James like they shared an inside joke.

He supposed they did, in a way. Their relationship had always been equal parts bickering and banter, and there was no malice behind Lily's exasperated insults these days. They were something like…friends. He grinned back, feeling proud and pleased and warm all over.

Of course, Phoebe spoiled the moment. "Hmm," she said, pursing her lips like she'd tasted something sour. But you agreed to go out with him?"

The grin slipped off Lily's face and her brow furrowed in confusion. "I did?"

"That's what he says," Phoebe said, gesturing at James. She arched an eyebrow. "But _you_ don't sound so sure."

"All right, I may have overstated it," James said hurriedly. His misrepresentations to Phoebe had the potential to turn this situation from playful to problematic very quickly. "She turned me down for a date, as usual." He smiled a 'you-got-me' sort of smile and hoped Lily would just shrug it off rather than ream him out for spreading false gossip.

"So you _are _here alone!" Phoebe's eyes lit up, and James' smile fell.

"Well…"

To James' surprise, Lily stepped up and threaded her arm through his. "Oh, well, I'm not his date, but I did promise him a dance," she said, smiling at Phoebe. "That's why you were looking for me, right?"

"You…did," James said, barely managing to keep it from sounding like a question. "And…right."

"Mmhmm," Lily said, nodding. Her hand slid down his arm, and she wrapped her palm in his. "Shall we?" she asked, giving his hand a gentle tug.

"Indeed," James said, once again grinning like an absolute idiot. He followed Lily's lead and twirled her away from a slack-jawed Phoebe, hardly believing his luck.

They moved to the middle of the floor amongst the other teenagers and found a spot near Dorcas, Marlene, Reginald, and Mary. The band was playing an upbeat song by the wizard punk group Dragonfire, and Mary was whipping her hair around while Marlene, Dorcas, and Reg jumped and yelled to the music. James joined in the wild dancing, keenly aware that he was holding Lily's hand the entire time.

He released it as the song ended, and she turned to him, beaming. "What a party!" she said. "This band is fabulous!"

"Pretty impressive, right?" James said. The band struck up a Hobgoblins tune, and he grinned as Lily shimmied to the beat. He absently ruffled his hair. "By the way, thanks for the save back there."

"Any time," Lily replied casually. "Phoebe's a cow."

"Udderly!" James declared. He waggled his eyebrows and smirked.

Lily groaned. "What's with you and your mates and the animal puns?" she asked, rolling her eyes. She turned her back to him, still shaking her hips in time to the music, but James thought he noticed her fighting a smile.

The almost-smile gave him confidence. "Oh, I dunno," he said with a cheeky wink. "All part of my dubious charm."

Lily's laughter could be heard even over the music. "Dubious indeed."

Perhaps due to the loud laughter, Sirius spotted them then, and he dragged Remus and Peter to the middle of the floor to join them. Marlene and Dorcas were doing the Bump and giggling at each other, and Peter began doing the Funky Chicken Dance to reactions both delighted and dismayed. And Lily kept up her little shimmy, laughing with her friends the whole time, without leaving James' side.

As the Hobgoblins song ended and a slower ballad came on, James dug a hand through his hair. "Right, well, thanks for the dance, Evans," he said, not wanting to push his luck. "Dances, I mean. I, uh, appreciate it."

Lily raised her eyebrows and smiled. "You don't want to dance anymore?

"No, it's not that—I do, I just don't want to keep you from—anything. Anyone," James stuttered. "I just don't want you to feel like you've got to spend all your time with me tonight, if you'd rather not."

"I don't feel like I've _got_ to do anything," Lily said, smirking. "But what I _want_ to do is keep dancing with you."

James' heart might've turned a cartwheel. He opened his mouth, then closed it again before finally managing: "Yeah?"

"Yeah." She draped her arms around his neck, then pulled back suddenly and gave him a too-innocent look. "Unless you'd rather have Phoebe back on your scent?"

"No, no!" He put his hands on Lily's waist and held them there gently, as if he were afraid he might spook her. "I just…I'm surprised you want to. Dance with me, that is. You find me about as charming as the Squid, remember?"

Her eyes twinkled as she looked up at James. "You're funny, Potter," she said, shaking her head fondly. She lowered her voice. "So I'm going to tell you a secret."

James swallowed hard. "All right."

She tilted her head so her lips were next to his ear. "I happen to find the Squid very, very charming."

A grin tugged at James' lips. "Do you?"

"Sometimes," she admitted. One of her shoulders twitched in a casual shrug. "It's complicated."

"With me, or the Squid?"

Lily rolled her eyes, but her pink cheeks showed a hint of vulnerability. "Both," she said. "But I'm sorting it out."

James shook his head and pulled her a little closer. "Well, I'm glad to hear it," he said, his smile widening at the way she couldn't seem to help rolling her eyes, even as she leaned into him. "Happy new year, Evans."

...

AN: this is just Silly fluff for a December 2019 Jily Challenge on tumblr! Prompt was: I'm trying to get away from an annoying person at the winter formal so I decide to ask the next person who walks by my table to dance and you just happen to be the most popular person in school.

Hope you enjoyed it! Happy New Year, everyone!


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